COVID-19 has stopped a lot of fun from happening this year, but with time and dedication many event organizers have adapted to the challenges and are finding new ways to stage events. Here are just a few examples from across Western Canada in the cities Mainstreet operates in. There's sure to be something for everyone to let you get out of the house to have some fun in a safe and responsible way! Here are some fun and frightening fall activities to get you out of the house and then scare you back in!
REGINA
Regina Symphony Orchestra
There's something so enchanting about an evening at the Symphony: dressing up, a nice dinner beforehand, the delicate strains of classical music played expertly as the notes disappear into the night air outside. While many cities have lost this elegance in the midst of the pandemic, those living in Regina are fortunate that their Symphony adapted quickly enough that they will be staging a 2020-21 season. Check out the schedule at the link below, and take yourself out of the real world for an evening by taking yourself out to the Symphony.
https://www.reginasymphony.com/2020-2021-season/
Globe Theatre Ghost Tours
Built between 1906-07, the Prince Edward Building has been home to the main Post Office, RCMP headquarters, served as City Hall, and enjoyed various other roles until it found its starring role when it was cast as home of the Globe Theatre in 1981. The building's long history may conceal many scary stories and other spooky spectres, you'll have to brave the tour yourself to see if they'll reveal themselves to you. A perfect Halloween outing.
https://tickets.globetheatrelive.com/TheatreManager/1/tmEvent/tmEvent944.html
Berry Barn Haunted House
If you're living in Saskatoon, you don't have to go all the way to Regina to get your frights; Saskatoon's own Berry Barn will be opening their annual Haunted House on October 10, 2020. Make sure to book ahead and bring your appetite, because once you've had your wits scared out, you'll need to fill up with the incredible Fall feast available. Beautiful harvest weather, cozy comfort food, and terrifying tribulations: sounds like a perfect October date!
https://www.berrybarn.ca/events
The Addams Family Musical
Come and visit the always-exciting Addams Family abode for dinner, where their worrying daughter Wednesday will be introducing her new boyfriend and his folks to the family. He's a total catch: nice, normal, from a respectable family: obviously things can only go wrong. Best part about this play? No need to leave your couch! The play will be staged live in Saskatoon and streamed to ticketholders. Grab some takeout, throw on your pajamas, and enjoy a night at the Theatre!
https://www.saskatoonsummerplayers.ca/addams-family/
Haunted Calgary Presents "The Devil's Drive-In"
Located on the edge of Calgary at New Horizons Mall (across from Crossiron Mills), The Devil's Drive-In is Haunted Calgary's frighteningly COVID-friendly way to experience terror from the illusory safety of your vehicle. Recognizing that different people scare differently, these sadistic geniuses have devised three separate horror shows to choose from. If you consider yourself especially brave, try and visit three times to see each one! Tickets sold by the car, you can have as many fellow victims as there are seatbelts all for one price. What are you waiting for? Afraid?
https://app.hauntpay.com/events/hauntedcalgary2020
Harvest Pumpkin Fest Date Night at Butterfield Acres
Fall just doesn't feel complete without some things, but you can cross every item off of that checklist in a single evening at Butterfield Acres' Date Night. Featuring a pumpkin patch, interaction with farm animals, sunset tractor ride, and even just snuggling up for some s'mores and hot chocolate by the fire! Get the true autumn experience, get out of the house, get to Butterfield Acres.
https://www.facebook.com/events/butterfield-acres/harvest-pumpkin-fest-date-night/357919952283004/
DARK at Fort Edmonton
It's not just the absence of light, it's also the presence of evil that makes this annual event so DARK. Fort Edmonton turns into an acreage of abandoned hope when October descends on the land, and even COVID-19 isn't enough to keep this malevolence at bay. With two locations (one for up to eight guests, the other for up to twelve) and an infinite number of nightmares to set free, this event is sure to put you in the Halloween mood and fill your Fall with fright… if you survive.
https://www.fortedmontonpark.ca/dark/
Fall by the Fireside
While it's always nice to enjoy the fall foliage from the comfort of your car, there's really nothing that beats getting out into that fresh fall air unless it's doing so with a blanket, a little flask, and some beautiful live classical and jazz music filling the atmosphere. Lucky Edmontonians will be able to enjoy exactly this, thanks to Mercury Opera's Fall by the Fireside, a series of intimate and social-distanced concerts at Casa Rosso. Mercury Opera are famous for concerts in unexpected places like back alleys, saloons, and even atop a paddle wheeler, and now at Casa Rosso!
Brinkworth Dungeon Haunted House
With COVID-19 closing many of Surrey's in-city Halloween haunts, you'll have to hop next door to Langley's Brinkworth Dungeon for your fantasy of fright. Once you've paid your admission, expect to meet such scary superstars as Frankenstein, Chucky, and even Elvira! Worth the sight detour for a devilish delight.
Halloween Storytime at Redwood Park
Many entries in this article have focused on truly terrifying events designed for grownups, but we wanted to highlight something for the kids, too! Dress up in your fave Halloween costumes and head down to Redwood Park, where there'll be a spooky story told under the Treehouse followed by a beautiful nature walk through the park to show off those creepy costumes!
https://www.surrey.ca/news-events/events/halloween-storytime-redwood-park
Maan Farms' Haunted Corn Maze 2020
After coming across a video revealing an abandoned testing facility beneath the Farm, amateur sleuth Thomas decides to investigate the rumors which have been circulating for years. It's only once he arrives at the site with a broken flashlight and no cell service that he realizes he's in over his head. Your job? To retrace his steps, finding your way through the corn maze. Will you find Thomas, or will you find whatever claimed Thomas' life?
https://www.maanfarms.com/haunted-2020/
Classic Drive-In for the Abbotsford Hospice
Now for something completely different: fall in the fifties! Take it back to the early days of Rock'n'Roll with this drive-in featuring burgers, games and prizes, a raffle, a classic car parade, a movie snack pack, classic music, and of course the main event: a drive-in movie! Best part? It's all enjoyed safely from the comfort of your vehicle!